The Election Commission has postponed the by-election for Manang-1 (b) provincial assembly constituency after the election schedule was disrupted by the Gen Z movement last month.

The decision was taken following a meeting between the commission’s officials with the government. Finance Minister Rameshore Prasad Khanal, Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal and Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Anil Kumar Sinha, were present in the meeting called by the commission.

“The registration of the parties for the by-election could not happen because of the curfew orders starting on September 8,” said Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson for the commission. According to him, a new election schedule will be announced soon.

The commission, on August 29, had announced a by-election on November 3 for the provincial seat. The provincial assembly seat became vacant after Rajiv Gurung, known as Deepak Manange, was removed from the position following a Supreme Court order.

On June 18, the Supreme Court’s constitutional bench, led by Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut and justices Sapana Pradhan Malla, Kumar Regmi, Hari Prasad Phuyal, and Kumar Chudal, ruled to dismiss Gurung.

The bench also declared him ineligible to contest elections, finding that he had falsified details to become a member of the provincial assembly. After the Supreme Court recently published the full text of the verdict, the government moved to publish notice in the Nepal Gazette setting the election date.

The by-election for the House of Representatives seat in Rupandehi-3 on the same date has already been cancelled following the announcement of snap polls. The House seat fell vacant following the death of Rastriya Prajatantra Party lawmaker Dipak Bohara. President Ramchandra Paudel, under the recommendation of the interim government, dissolved the lower house on September 13 and announced mid-term elections for March 5, next year.

The election commission has resumed voter registration targeting the elections which are barely five months away.